Kibera, Africa’s largest slum community will hold an inaugural global forum in January next year.
The inaugural World Poverty Forum (WPF), taking place on the 11 and 12 January, 2020 aims at giving real voice to the poorest so they can co-create solutions to their own problems.
WPF will be one of the first events in a United Nation 2020 plan announced during UNGA week to respond to the urgent need to accelerate concrete progress towards meeting the sustainable development goals in 2020 and beyond.
The founder of Shining Hope for Communities Kennedy Odede where the event will be held said WPF would spark new ideas in addressing poverty in slums.
“It is sometimes forgotten that any programme to improve lives can only be successful it if works with the grain of individuals – and the bundles of talent, hope and fear that make up their unique experiences. We will bring leaders to a place where they can feel both the unforgiving reality of poverty alongside the hope that an institution like Shofco can create,” he said.
He said it would bring fearless debate happening in the thick of the community together with the people help is seek for– rather than in a western five star hotel.
“We want to reverse the usual power dynamics of development conferences and release the energies that genuine collaboration can bring,” he said.
The full two-day programme will bring a holistic approach to its discussion, focusing on practical solutions; knowing that now, more than ever, there is an interconnectedness to all the challenges – from health and education to conflict and climate change – that keep people entrenched in poverty.
The forum will include ‘Learning Journeys’, where delegates will visit real projects in Kibera as well as ‘Hacking Poverty’ disruptor seminars that look for simple solutions to everyday hardships.
The forum will celebrate pioneers in the global fight against poverty – from individuals and tech start-ups to NGOs and corporations – with the launch of the first Kibera Awards.
The forum will also launch a new Global Alliance for the Poor that will create a platform for leaders from different disciplines to help transform slum communities by working directly with the people who live in them.
WPF will hire local photographers, video crews, caterers and musicians.
The contributions of their talents, voice and spirit to the forum will be a powerful reminder to delegates that there are rich pools of skill, flair and inventiveness in the world’s poorest communities.
